EE Mobile Network Review

Contents list Value for money Plans and extras Coverage and speeds Customer service Verdict Alternatives to EE

 Value for money

At first glance EE might look like poor value for money, as it’s one of the most expensive mobile networks in the UK. In fact, most of the time its prices are higher than any of the competition.

So if you’re just after a basic mobile plan and are only concerned about general UK allowances – not roaming or extras – then EE is somewhat poor value. But that’s not the market it’s really aiming at.

Many of its plans come with premium ‘Inclusive Extras’, such as subscriptions to streaming services, and once you factor these in, the prices become a lot more palatable – assuming they’re something you want.

EE also makes roaming both in Europe and select locations further afield quite affordable (though not free, other than on select plans). With unlimited data plans and all sorts of other extras such as Wi-Fi Calling included too, you’re certainly getting a lot for your money.

EE also offers bonus data if you take out broadband with the company too, and it lets you gift data if you have multiple plans on your account. We’ll dive into the extras more below, but in short you’re unlikely to feel overly short changed by EE’s plans.

That said, most of these extras are nice to have rather than essential, and they don’t come cheap. So overall we’d say EE’s value is middling.

Plans and extras

	Mobile phones	SIM-only
5G	Yes	Yes
‘Inclusive Extras’	Yes	Yes
Tethering	Yes	Yes
Free roaming	Yes, on select plans	Yes, on select plans
Wi-Fi Calling	Yes	Yes
4G Calling	Yes	Yes
Unlimited data	Yes	Yes
Spending caps	Yes	Yes
Data rollover	No	No

EE offers plans of basically every kind, including SIM Only, Pay Monthly handsets, tablets, mobile broadband, home broadband, data only, and Pay As You Go.

Its focus of course though is on phones and SIMs, and for these you can get up to unlimited data, paired with either a standard plan (where you basically just get your allowances), or one that comes with one or more ‘Inclusive Extras’.

These extras can vary a bit depending on whether you pick an iPhone, an Android phone, or a tablet, but the overall selection includes Apple One, Apple Music, Apple TV Plus, Apple Arcade, BT Sport, Netflix, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Microsoft 365 Personal, a Roam Abroad Pass (which lets you roam in Europe along with the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand at no extra cost), and an Entertainment Data Pass (which lets you use data on select streaming services without it coming out of your data allowance).

That’s a strong selection of extras, and depending on your plan you can take up to three of them, though of course the plans that include these are extra expensive.

Beyond these, if you don’t have unlimited data, then a standard part of EE’s plans is ‘Stay Connected’, which lets you keep using data when your allowance runs out, just at much lower speeds.

EE also offers tethering, Wi-Fi Calling, 4G Calling, and multi-line discounts. It doesn’t offer free roaming as standard, but you can roam in most of Europe for £2 per day. You can also get a Roam Abroad Pass on select plans, or for £10 per month, which includes roaming in Europe, the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand.

Coverage and speeds

EE claims to offer over 99% population coverage with 4G and over 98% with 3G, though these figures are largely in line with the UK’s other networks too. Its 4G network also reaches more than 90% of the UK’s geography, and while that too is broadly in line with rivals, tests suggest EE might have a slight coverage lead.

Where its lead could be more significant is in 5G, which no UK network yet offers comprehensively, but which EE offers in at least 200 towns and cities at last count, and in terms of population coverage it’s believed to be in either first or second place (competing with Three).

Getting a concrete picture of coverage is tricky, but when it comes to speeds, all sorts of independent tests have been carried out.

Based on these, it seems EE might offer the highest peak 5G speeds of any UK network, but its average and median 5G speeds look to come second to Three’s.

For other connectivity types such as 4G and 3G though, EE consistently outperforms rivals, so if you don’t have 5G in your area or you’re moving between 5G and 4G signals regularly, then EE is likely to offer the most consistently good data performance of any UK network.

Customer service

EE has physical stores you can visit, as well as customer service over the phone, live chat, an app, and online community forums, so there are a lot of tools at your disposal to get any help you might need.

In terms of the quality of that help, some things working in EE’s favour include the fact that 100% of calls are now answered by call centres in the UK and Ireland.

On top of that, in Ofcom’s latest customer service report, it was found that 92% of EE customers were satisfied with the service overall, which is in line with O2 and Vodafone, and better than Three. That said, only 55% were satisfied with the way their complaints were handled. That’s actually slightly better than the average across mobile networks of 53%, but doesn’t sound great.

Verdict

EE is in many ways the UK’s best mobile network. Certainly, if money is no object then EE is top of the heap, but those after a cheap network should look elsewhere.

You arguably get what you pay for here though, with fantastic coverage, high speeds, and an unparalleled number of extras. Customer service could use some work but is broadly in line with rivals, and there’s little else to complain about here.

Alternatives

If you’re looking for an alternative that’s almost as packed full of perks and extras, then consider Vodafone. This is another major network, and many of its plans come with entertainment subscriptions, making them closer to EE’s plans than what other networks offer.

If speed and coverage are your priority then consider Three – despite being a major network this is light on extras, but its 5G speeds impress in tests.

Or if you want EE’s coverage without EE’s prices then take a look at BT Mobile, which has the same coverage (and parent company) but typically offers more affordable plans – without most of EE’s extras of course.